Sun Salutation By Dina Cassir
Sun Salutation By Dina Cassir
It’s time to roll out your yoga mat and discover the combination of physical and mental exercises that for thousands of years have hooked yoga practitioners around the globe. Don’t be intimidated by yoga terminology, fancy yoga studios and complicated poses. Yoga is for everyone. Dina Cassir, pilates and yoga instructor, will show you a quick yoga sequence that will tighten your core while giving you plenty of time to catch that early meeting.
What are sun salutations?
Surya Namaskar, or Sun Salutation, is a series of postures that warms, strengthens, and aligns the entire body. It serves as an all-purpose yoga tool, kind of like a hammer that’s also a saw and a screwdriver if you can imagine such a thing. Sun salutations are a key part of any vinyasa flow style yoga practice. You may not even realize you are doing them, but many teachers use them as a warm-up at the beginning of class or even base whole classes around them.
If you learn this sequence, it will really help you if you ever want to practice at home, since one of the biggest obstacles to doing yoga on your own is figuring out what to do when you first get on your mat. Sun salutations are often a great choice.
Core Targeting Sun Salutation
You can follow along with the video above to practice your sun salutation with Dina, or you can continue reading as we take you through a step-by-step sequence.
Standing at the edge of your yoga mat feet together or separated in a mountain pose, inhale as you bring your hands up closing them above your head. As you exhale, fold it in and touch the ground with your fingertips.
Inhale and bring your chest forward. Rest your palms on the ground shoulder length apart. You can either jump back into a plank or step back into a plank. Rest all the way down on your abdominals. Open your feet wide and your hands into a T pose. This will work your back muscles, glutes, and shoulders. Lift your arms and legs simultaneously as you inhale, and bring them back down on the ground as you exhale. Repeat 5 times.
Tuck your feet back in, place your hands under your ribs and bring your chest up. Push back and cross ankle over ankle then roll back and move into a sitting pose with your feet extended together lifted off the ground so your body forms a V shape. Extend your arms parallel to your legs.
Lower yourself towards the ground with an inhale without laying back entirely then bring yourself up with the exhale. Repeat three times.
Sit down, cross ankle over another, roll forward once again, and hold a plank position for 5 seconds.
Once done, lower yourself to the ground entirely one more time. The feet can be together or separated. Bring your arms under your forehead and inhale as your lift your head, arms, and legs. Exhale as you bring them to the starting position. Repeat three times.
Place your hands under your ribs and bring your chest up. Move into a cobra pose and then into a downward-facing dog. Bend your knees and take your hips to the left side to cross your ankle. Extend your arm until you are fully into a side plank position. Fold on yourself with each inhale and extend with the exhale. Repeat on the opposite side.
Go back into a high plank pose and hold it for 5 seconds. Push back your tailbone while keeping your back straight and knees slightly bent. Then move into a child’s pose and exhale.
That’s all there is to it!
If you tried this sun salutation or have any questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to us.